Lentils

Red lentils.

Brown, green, and red lentils.

Closeup of brown lentils.

Ingredients

Lentils

When I am giving lectures I love to talk about lentils. Legumes
are one of my favorite ingredients and lentils are one of my
favorite legumes. They keep well in the cupboard, cook quickly and
there are dozens of ways to use them - in soups, salads, stews,
chili or simply as a side dish.

Lentils, like peas, garbanzos and peanuts, are legumes. You can
think of them as a starch since they are mostly carbohydrate and
protein with essentially no fat. They best part is that they contain
tons of fiber with a half cup of cooked lentils coming in at around
8 grams.

You can find references to lentils in the Bible and
they have been found in Egyptian tombs (dried lentils do keep well).
Like other legumes you can cook and serve lentils whole, but they
are also great pureed into in soups and sauces. Because they are
so tiny, dried lentils don’t have to be soaked overnight like other
legumes. It is a good idea to rinse them well because they contain
a lot of dust and dirt. Boil very gently, testing often for doneness.

There are three main types of lentils. The most common is the
brown lentil, sometimes labeled Indian Brown Lentil or German lentil.
I have seen these repeatedly mislabeled as green lentils, but strictly
speaking they are not. They are light brown in color and are easy
to find on your grocery store shelves. They cook quickly and will
be mushy if you cook them too long. This does make them perfect
for soups and will give the soup a rich thickness.

The small dark green lentil is also known as the French lentil.
You might find them labeled Puy lentils or by the French term
"lentilles vertes du Puy." They have a thin shell and a stronger
pea-like flavor. These are slightly tough and take longer to
cook. I love to use these in salads and side dishes, such as
pilafs, because they hold up well to cooking and won’t turn to
mush.

Red (pink) and yellow lentils have had the hull removed and are
split much like split peas. As a result they will cook more quickly
than brown or French lentils. These are slightly smaller and not
as plump as green lentils and have a milder flavor. In India yellow
lentils are known as moong dal and red lentils known as masoor dal.
You might also see the pink lentils labeled Egyptian lentils.

Lentils store well. Keep them in a Ziplock bag and place the bag
inside a plastic container. Because they are quick cooking you will
always have the starter for a great quick meal.

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